10 states with the most gun violence

More than two-thirds of all homicides in the U.S. are gun-related. Of the 16,121 homicides reported in 2013, 11,208 were caused by gun violence. Including suicides, nearly 34,000 people died in gun-related incidents in 2013, up 13.8% from 10 years earlier. While federal gun laws are uniform across the country, state regulations vary, offering more lax or more strict approaches to firearm use. Seven of the 10 states with the most firearm deaths in 2013 have enacted stand your ground laws. In fact, none of the states with the most gun violence require permits to purchase rifles, shotguns, or handguns. Gun owners are also not required to register their weapons in any of these states. Meanwhile, many of the states with the least gun violence require a permit or other form of identification to buy a gun. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) keeps track of the number of gun-related deaths in each state. Fatalities include homicides, suicides, and accidents. The frequency of firearm-related deaths varies considerably across the country. In Hawaii, the state with the fewest gun-related fatalities, there were just 2.6 firearm-associated deaths per 100,000 people. In Alaska, on the other hand, there were nearly 20 gun-related deaths per 100,000 residents, the most of any state. Above, Alana Simmons leaves a message on a board set up in front of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church after a mass shooting at the church killed nine people in June in Charleston, S.C.

From 24/7 Wall St., these are the 10 states with the highest gun-related deaths.

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10. Tennessee

2013 firearm death rate: 15.4 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 9,568 (11th highest) Violent crime rate: 590.6 (4th highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No There were more than 1,000 gun-related deaths — including homicide, suicide, and accidents — in Tennessee in 2013, or 15.4 deaths per 100,000 residents, the 10th highest rate in the country. Overall crime rates were also quite high, with 590.6 violent crimes reported per 100,000 people, far more than the nearly 368 reported crimes for every 100,000 Americans. Additionally, less than 25% of adults in the state had at least a bachelor’s degree, less than the 29.6% of adults with a bachelor’s degree across the nation.

Above, convention attendees look at old west handguns replicas April 11 at the 2015 NRA Annual Convention in Nashville.

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9. New Mexico

2013 firearm death rate: 15.4 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 2,983 (19th lowest) Violent crime rate: 613.0 (2nd highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No Like most states across the country, the largest proportion of gun-related deaths in New Mexico was attributable to suicide. The age-adjusted firearm suicide rate of 10.3 per 100,000 was the ninth highest rate in the country. New Mexico also had the highest death rate by legal intervention — deaths caused by police or other law-enforcement officials — in the country. In general, New Mexico residents were exposed to a large number of crimes. The state reported 613 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, the second highest rate in the country. Low education levels and widespread poverty may partly explain the high gun violence and deaths. Nearly 22% of New Mexico’s population lived in poverty, substantially higher than the national poverty rate of 15.8%. Additionally, only 84.3% of adults had at least a high school diploma, the sixth lowest rate in the country.

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8. Oklahoma

2013 firearm death rate: 16.5 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 5,352 (23rd highest) Violent crime rate: 441.2 (12th highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No Gun-related homicides and suicides were both relatively high in Oklahoma. At least 433 Oklahomans, or 11.1 per 100,000, took their own life with a gun, the sixth highest rate in the country. There were 4.8 gun-related homicides per 100,000 residents, the 10th highest rate nationwide. Like all of the states with the most gun violence, Oklahoma also does not require a permit to purchase a rifle, shotgun, or handgun. Additionally, Oklahoma households were among the poorest in the country with an annual median income of $45,690.

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7. Wyoming

2013 firearm death rate: 16.5 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 879 (7th lowest) Violent crime rate: 205.1 (4th lowest) Permit required to buy handgun: No With the second highest firearm-related suicide rate, Wyoming residents were more than twice as likely to commit suicide as residents across the nation. More than 87% of firearm deaths in Wyoming were due to suicide, considerably higher than the 63% of all gun-related fatalities across the country. Unlike other states with high rates of gun-violence, however, Wyoming residents were well-educated. Roughly 94% of adults 25 and older had at least graduated from high school, the highest rate in the country. Despite the high rate of gun-violence, other types of crimes were relatively uncommon. Just over 205 violent crimes were reported per 100,000 residents, one of the lowest rates in the country.

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6. Arkansas

2013 firearm death rate: 16.7 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 4,478 (24th lowest) Violent crime rate: 460.3 (10th highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No A typical household in Arkansas earned $40,511 in 2013, nearly the lowest such figure in the country. Additionally, just 20.6% of adults had at least a bachelor’s degree, the third lowest rate nationwide. The low incomes and education levels may have contributed to Arkansas’ high gun-related deaths. There were 501 deaths by firearm in Arkansas, or 16.7 per 100,000, the sixth highest rate. Like other states in the country, nearly two-thirds of gun-related deaths were due to suicide. Like every state on this list, Arkansas’ gun laws are relatively permissive. Currently, no laws require that gun owners have permits for the purchase of shotguns, rifles, and handguns. Additionally, gun owners are not obligated to register their weapons.

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5. Montana

2013 firearm death rate: 16.8 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 1,540 (12th lowest) Violent crime rate: 252.9 (11th lowest) Permit required to buy handgun: No Montana had the fifth highest rate of firearm deaths, at nearly 17 per 100,000 residents. Further, gun-related deaths have been steadily increasing since 2006. In fact, Montana registered the highest firearm death rate in the decade ending in 2013. Other types of crime — including rape, robbery, and motor vehicle theft — were relatively less common in the state. There were roughly 253 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, significantly lower than the violent crime rate across the nation of nearly 368 per 100,000. As in many of the states with high rates of gun deaths, suicides made up the vast majority of deaths. More than 85% of gun-deaths were due to suicide, the 10th highest such share in the country.

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4. Alabama

2013 firearm death rate: 17.5 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 7,915 (16th highest) Violent crime rate: 430.8 (14th highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No Nearly 19% of Alabama residents lived below the poverty line, the seventh highest rate in the country. Additionally, the state had among the worst educational attainment rates nationwide, which may have contributed to the high gun-death rate. Between 2004 and 2013, an annual average of 16.6 people were killed by firearms, the fourth highest rate in the country. Despite a drop in 2011, the firearm death rate increased to the state’s 10-year high in 2013. Other types of crime in Alabama were also prevalent. There were 430.8 violent crimes reported per 100,000, a higher rate than the 367.9 violent crimes across the nation.

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3. Mississippi

2013 firearm death rate: 17.7 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 5,056 (24th highest) Violent crime rate: 274.6 (18th lowest) Permit required to buy handgun: No With 24% of its residents living in poverty, Mississippi had the highest poverty rate in the country. Poverty and low educational attainment rates may contribute to higher rates of gun-related deaths. Mississippi had the second highest gun-related homicide rate in the country at 7.4 homicides per 100,000 residents. In general, crime was not particularly prevalent. There were just 274.6 violent crimes reported per 100,000, compared with 367.9 such crimes per 100,000 across the country. Mississippi also led the country in unintentional deaths by a firearm, with 0.6 deaths occurring for every 100,000 people, three-times more frequent than across the country.

Above, the state flag of Mississippi, which incorporates the flag of the Confederate States of America, is displayed with the flags of the other 49 states and territories in the tunnel connecting the senate office building and the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC.

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2. Louisiana

2013 firearm death rate: 19.1 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 8,552 (13th highest) Violent crime rate: 518.5 (5th highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No Louisiana was the only state with the most gun violence where firearm-related suicides accounted for less than half of all gun deaths. In fact, homicides accounted for roughly 51% of all gun deaths in the state. As a result, Louisiana had the highest gun-related homicide rate in the country, at 9.7 murders per 100,000 residents. Louisiana also had the highest average firearm death rate in the country over the 10 years ending in 2013, when there were 18.8 firearm deaths per 100,000 in the state, compared with 10.2 across the country. The high number of gun deaths may be tied to gun policy. Louisiana, like many of the states on this list, does not require gun owners to have a permit to purchase a firearm, nor must they register their weapons. Above, community members respond to a shooting during a Mother's Day parade on May 13, 2013 in New Orleans. 19 people were injured during the shooting, including two children.

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1. Alaska

2013 firearm death rate: 19.6 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 1,256 (10th lowest) Violent crime rate: 640.4 (the highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No There were roughly 20 firearm deaths per 100,000 residents in Alaska, nearly double the national rate. As in many other states with high gun-death rates, the vast majority of deaths were the result of suicide. Unlike most states on this list, however, Alaskan households were relatively wealthy. A typical household earned $72,237, roughly $20,000 more than a typical household across the nation. Other types of crime were also more common in the state. In fact, Alaska had the highest violent crime rate in the country at more than 640 violent crimes per 100,000 residents. Above, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin speaks during the 2013 NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits in Houston.

1. Alaska

2013 firearm death rate: 19.6 per 100,000 Total firearm deaths 2004-2013: 1,256 (10th lowest) Violent crime rate: 640.4 (the highest) Permit required to buy handgun: No There were roughly 20 firearm deaths per 100,000 residents in Alaska, nearly double the national rate. As in many other states with high gun-death rates, the vast majority of deaths were the result of suicide. Unlike most states on this list, however, Alaskan households were relatively wealthy. A typical household earned $72,237, roughly $20,000 more than a typical household across the nation. Other types of crime were also more common in the state. In fact, Alaska had the highest violent crime rate in the country at more than 640 violent crimes per 100,000 residents. Above, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin speaks during the 2013 NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits in Houston.

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